PALO ALTO, Calif. — Tavita Pritchard begins his tenure as Stanford's head coach Saturday when the Cardinal host Hawaii in a season opener carrying extra weight for a program looking to end a stretch of five straight losing seasons.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. Eastern time at Stanford Stadium, with the game airing on the ACC Network. Pritchard, 39, takes over his alma mater after 13 seasons on the Stanford coaching staff, hired last November by Andrew Luck, the program's former star quarterback who now serves as general manager. Pritchard replaces Frank Reich, who led Stanford to a 4-8 record last season as interim head coach.

Pritchard's own history with Stanford includes one of the most celebrated moments in the program's football history. As a redshirt sophomore quarterback making his first career start on Oct. 6, 2007, Pritchard led Stanford to a stunning 24-23 upset of No. 2-ranked Southern California, at the time a 41-point underdog, capped by a 10-yard touchdown pass to Mark Bradford with 49 seconds remaining. He later lost his starting job to Andrew Luck before his playing career ended in 2009, after which he immediately transitioned into........

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